Top five: Premier League transfer betrayals

In football, one day you can be a hero in the eyes of the fans and the next day a villain, and this is definitely the case for the five players in this article.

When at a club, players tend to build a strong relationship with that club and its fans, but there are times when footballers have betrayed the club they play for and the fans that support them.

Over in Germany, with Mario Gotze all set to leave Borussia Dortmund to join Bayern Munich, I thought I would look into the five transfers in the Premier League that have shocked the footballing world and turned a footballer from a hero to a villain in the space of a single day.

Footballers have a 'greedy' label always over their heads because they pocket stupid amounts of money every week for doing very little and, in some of these cases, it is clear that money has been the motivation behind their move to fierce rivals.

From Sol Campbell to Robin van Persie, many players have betrayed and many more will betray in the future.

Here are my five worst football betrayals in the Premier League:

5. Sol Campbell | Tottenham to Arsenal

In 2001, Sol Campbell left White Hart Lane in order to move to Highbury, a move that not many had dared do and not many do to this day. What made it worse was that Campbell let his contract run down and then left the club on a free and accepted an offer from Arsenal.

He then went on to become one of the best centre-backs in Arsenal's history and won trophies left, right and centre - a move that Tottenham fans still cannot accept and still cannot move on from.

4. William Gallas | Chelsea to Arsenal to Tottenham

Now, what Campbell did was terrible as he jumped from Spurs to Arsenal, but Gallas went one better. He started at Stamford Bridge, moved on to the Emirates Stadium and now plies his trade at White Hart Lane.

Loved at Chelsea, hated at Arsenal and it seems hated at Tottenham as well after a string of poor performances. After making over 150 appearances for Chelsea, he then joined Arsenal in an exchange with Ashley Cole - not the last time you will hear his name - and made over 100 appearances for the Gunners, and now is halfway to that milestone with Tottenham.

3. Ashley Cole | Arsenal to Chelsea

Some people will label him as the biggest betrayer in football as he left Arsenal, who at the time were one of the best footballing clubs in the world, to join a team that was throwing money in any players faces.

Arsenal offered the left-back a new contract which would see him earn £55k-a-week, but apparently that offer made Cole 'tremble with anger'. So the defender refused the contract and joined Chelsea where he was offered over double that.

Hated by the Arsenal faithful after the lack of respect shown at the time and, trust me, it's only got worse down the years. Cole continues to remind Arsenal fans and players that he is winning trophies at Stamford Bridge.

2. Carlos Tevez | Manchester United to Manchester City

The Argentinian striker is very similar to Ashley Cole. He left a club that was winning everything and one of the biggest players in the footballing world in order to join a team that was offering stupid amounts of money to players.

Tevez left United in order to join neighbours City and then had a ad-board designed for him with his arms in the air with 'Welcome to Manchester' written in the background. Suddenly a villain to United fans and made worse by his celebrations against them whenever he found the back of the net.

1. Robin van Persie | Arsenal to Manchester United

This is the most recent betrayal and, in my opinion, the worst just because of everything Arsenal did for Van Persie when he spent years on the sidelined riddled with injury problems.

The Dutchman finally got over his injury troubles and had a sublime season for the Gunners. Unfortunately that one season in the limelight was enough for him to jump ship and join rivals United.

Arsenal captain to Arsenal villain in a matter of moments after he publicly announced his decision to reject a contract extension at the club and join Manchester United.

Now, I am 100% sure a lot of people will disagree with this list and will argue the cases for every player who has left. The majority of them have all left for the better that's for sure (apart from Gallas), but it still doesn't hide the fact they have joined fierce rivals.

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DISCLAIMER

This article has been written by a member of the GiveMeSport Writing Academy and does not represent the views of
GiveMeSport.com or SportsNewMedia. The views and opinions expressed are solely that of the author credited at the top of this article.
GiveMeSport.com and SportsNewMedia do not take any responsibility for the content of its contributors.

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